About Dr. Rodney King ('Coach')
My story didn’t start with a black belt.
It started with a knot in my stomach.
Before I was ever a martial artist or coach, I was a kid growing up in poverty, trying to make sense of a world that felt unsafe. I spent my childhood in government housing in Johannesburg, and by seventeen, I found myself homeless. I didn’t start martial arts to win trophies or prove something. I started because I needed to survive.
For me, it wasn’t sport—it was a lifeline. It taught me how to stand my ground, not only in a physical sense but in a world that constantly tried to knock me down. Every punch, every fall, every moment of fear became a lesson in self-respect. Martial arts gave me something no one else could at that time: a sense of control over my own story.
From Survival to Mastery
That lifeline turned into a lifelong vocation. I built the School of Crazy Monkey from scratch, coaching everyone from special forces operators and law enforcement teams to world champions and everyday people who simply wanted to feel safe in their own skin.
But somewhere along the way, modern martial arts changed. It became spectacle—performative, more ego-driven. The deeper philosophy, the pursuit of character and clarity that once sat at its heart, was slowly replaced by aggression without introspection.
The Hard Stop
After decades on the mat, my body called time.
Years of full-contact training caught up with me: CTE-like symptoms, cervical spine degeneration, and chronic fatigue that no “mindset hack” could outwork.
For nearly a decade, I struggled in silence, trying to fight what could no longer be fought. I lost my health, my energy, and for a while, my sense of purpose. The person who had always helped others stay strong could barely get out of bed. It was humbling—and for a time, deeply despairing.
The Turning Point
Then something shifted.
Forced into stillness, I began to rediscover what martial arts had always truly been for me—not fighting, but flourishing.
On slow walks along the rugged coastlines of the Isle of Man, I learned to meet life as I once met an opponent: with calm, presence, and focus. Step by step, breath by breath, I started to rebuild—not the fighter, but the human being underneath.
What I once saw as an ending revealed itself as a gift. The loss of physical dominance opened a deeper path of embodied wisdom.
The Rebirth: The Mindful Warrior Path
When I eventually returned to the mat, I knew I couldn’t teach the same way again.
This time, it wasn’t about performance—it was about presence. It wasn’t about winning—it was about wholeness.
That’s how the Mindful Warrior Philosophy was born: a synthesis of everything I’ve lived, fought through, and learned. It unites modern martial arts practice, mindfulness, and philosophy into a single path of holistic self-preservation—for body, mind, and spirit.
Today, the School of Crazy Monkey has evolved into a place where people train not just to defend themselves, but to reclaim themselves. It’s where strength meets stillness, and where the martial path becomes a positive way of living again.
If You’re Here Reading This...
You’re probably not looking for highlight-reel violence.
You’re looking for calm in chaos, clarity in conflict, and confidence that doesn’t rely on bravado. You’re looking for a way to move through life’s pressures without losing yourself.
That’s the path I walk now, and it’s the one I invite you to walk with me.
We don’t just train for the fight. We train for life itself.
Welcome to the School of Crazy Monkey, and to the way of the Mindful Warrior.
— Dr. Rodney King (‘Coach’)
Founder of the School of Crazy Monkey & 5th Degree Black Belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
The Mindful Warrior Philosophy
The deeper fight is the one inside. Every training we offer is rooted in four essential principles:
Self-Mastery
Control your inner world before trying to control the outer one.
Focused Presence
Train your attention like a blade — sharp, calm, alert.
Compassionate Action
Strength is meaningless without wisdom and heart.
Intentional Living
Move with clarity. Live with purpose.